Thank You, Moon: Finding a Hook
Today is the official release date for Thank You, Moon: Celebrating Nature’s Night Light, and I couldn’t be more excited. The story behind this book traces back to February 2020. Editor Katherine Harrison tagged me on Twitter, alerting me to a conversation about how animals respond to the Moon’s cycle, and asked “Is this something you’d potentially be […]
Re-thinking “E” Is for Everyone
Nonfiction for kids just keeps getting better and better every single year. It’s such an exciting time for informational books. And I’m deeply grateful for the efforts of librarians to enrich their nonfiction collections with new books in all different categories. There truly is a perfect nonfiction book for every child, and librarians are out there on […]
Kids Love Nonfiction: Changing My Mindset by Kaitlin Alvine
Today we hear from fourth grade teacher Kaitlin Alvine who I met on the #classroombookaday Facebook group, created and maintained by uber-dedicated school librarian Jillian Heise. I highly recommend this group! Like many educators, Kaitlin is just beginning to understand the power of nonfiction to turn children into passionate readers. Thank you, Kaitlin, for sharing […]
Blasts from the Past
Each summer, I review this blog’s stats to see what kinds of topics resonate most with readers. And year after year, I notice a trend. Readership tends to fall off in April. I think there are a few reasons. First, most schools have finished their informational writing unit for the year, so fewer educators are […]
Let’s Talk Nonfiction! The More Voices the Better
I spent a big chunk of my summer reading and thinking about nonfiction. And that means I’m brimming with ideas and questions. Right now, they’re kicking around in my head, and I can’t wait to share them with you. But I’m also open to your ideas, suggestions, recommendations, and questions. If there’s a topic or idea […]
3 Great Ways to Promote Deeper Thinking with Nonfiction
For the last few weeks, I’ve been sharing ideas and activities from educators who are working to increase their students’ access to a wide range of high-quality nonfiction books. You can scroll down for previous weeks’ suggestions. Here are three links to activities that allow students to look at nonfiction craft and content closely. This deep […]
Is Memoir Nonfiction?
Now that state standards for ELA dictate that students to read and write more nonfiction than ever before, many middle school and high school English teachers are leaning heavily on memoir to satisfy this curricular requirement. Because memoir has characters, settings, dialog, and a strong narrative arc, it feels familiar and comfortable to fiction lovers. […]
3 Great Ways to Help Students Find Nonfiction They’ll Love
For the last few weeks, I’ve been sharing ideas and activities from educators who are working to increase their students’ access to a wide range of high-quality nonfiction books. You can scroll down to for previous weeks’ suggestions. Check out the links below for ideas that can help students learn about themselves as readers and identify […]
3 Great Ways to Increase Nonfiction Circulation in Your Library
For the next few weeks, I’ll be sharing ideas and activities from educators who are working to increase their students’ access to a wide range of high-quality nonfiction books. Let’s get started by taking a look at how to set up library collections in ways that make it easy for kids to find the books they […]
A Second Grader’s Awesome Observation
Last week, I received a wonderful letter from a second-grade teacher in Washington State. She was excited to tell me what happened when she shared Whale Fall: Exploring an Ocean-floor Ecosystem with her class. After reading it aloud, she asked students what they noticed about the book. And one response blew her away: “The creatures start […]